Sibling Rivalry
by Ilex the Elder
Summary: My first Yu-Gi-Oh fic! Joey learns the reason why his mother left and how it involves Serenity's parentage.
1. Chapter 1

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Author's note: I searched several web sites (in vain) to find the names of Joey's and Kaiba's parents. Having no luck, I went the creative route and made them up. 

"There you are, Joseph," Elizabeth Wheeler smiled at her son. "I was getting worried about you."

"I was just callin' Yugi, Téa, and Tristan to let them know that Serenity is out of surgery. Any news on when she'll get out of recovery?" 

"Probably not for a couple of hours, Joseph. You heard what the doctor said earlier." She patted the spot next to her on the couch in the waiting room lounge. "Come and sit down."

Joey shook his head slightly. "'S okay, Ma. I'll stand." 

Elizabeth wasn't surprised by her son's rejection. Ever since her divorce, Joey had blamed her for separating him from his sister Serenity. "Joseph, I know we haven't exactly seen eye-to-eye since your father and I got divorced…"

"And you took Serenity away," Joey replied, bitterness evident in his voice.

"Joseph, I think you're old enough now to understand what happened between me and your father and why I did what I did. Please come over here and sit down. We need to talk." 

Joey gave his mother a suspicious sidelong glance.

"Joseph, please," Elizabeth begged. "I know you must hate me for what I did, but you need to understand why I took Serenity."

The resentment Joey felt toward his mother abated slightly when he saw the hurt look in her eyes. "I never could hate you, Ma." He shuffled over to the couch and sat down next to his mother.

Elizabeth reached out and tenderly brushed aside a piece of blond hair that had fallen across her son's eyes. "I almost couldn't believe it when you came into Serenity's room. You've grown so much since the last time I saw you. I can't believe how tall you are now."

Joey abruptly pulled away from his mother's touch. "Ma, stop it! I'm not a little kid anymore."

Elizabeth reluctantly pulled her hand away. Despite all these years, her son's rejection still stung. "You're right, Joseph. You're not a little kid anymore. And that's why we need to talk. You're old enough now to understand the circumstances why your father and I got divorced."

"And you left me!" Joey shot back. "You took my sister away, and you left me behind! Sorry Ma, I'm never gonna understand why you did what you did." Joey quickly turned away, hoping that his mother wouldn't see the tears starting in his eyes. Even though he always tried to maintain a tough façade on the exterior, inside he was still a little boy who would never understand why his mother abandoned him. 

"Joseph, I know you're hurting. I know you must think that I abandoned you," Elizabeth reached for her son's arm, but he pulled away once more.

"Leave me alone, Ma."

"Joseph, look at me." Elizabeth took her son's chin and forced him to look her in the eye. And what she saw was almost too painful to bear. 

"Why, Ma?" Joey replied, his voice quavering in a desperate effort to fight back tears. "Why did you do it? Why did you leave me?"

"Joseph, when I first met your father, he was a handsome, wonderful man," Elizabeth began. "And we loved each other very much."

"Then why did you leave him?" 

"Joseph, you may not understand this entirely, but when you love someone, you think that you can change them."

Joey gave his mother a puzzled look. "Whaddya talking about, Ma?"

"Joseph, I don't know if you're aware of this, but your father has a drinking problem."

Joey was shocked by his mother's accusation. "Wha…? What're you talking about, Ma? Yeah, I know that Dad has a beer every now and then, but he doesn't get drunk or anything like that."

"Maybe not in front of you, but in private he does. Or at least he did. I hope he got help for that. Anyway, whenever your dad got drunk, he'd go off and leave me alone for days at a time. I don't suppose you'd remember that…you were just a baby at the time." Elizabeth sighed. "One night, your father came home and I knew that he had been with another woman."

"Wha…? You're lyin', Ma!" Joey jumped up from the couch. 

"Joseph, please sit back down," Elizabeth ordered. "Don't make a scene." The other couple sitting in the waiting area was staring at them.

"_Me_ make a scene? You're the one accusin' Dad of being a womanizing drunk!" Joey shouted.

"Joseph, sit down," Elizabeth ordered once more. "I know that this isn't easy for you to hear, but if you want to know why I took Serenity, you're going to have to hear the truth."

Joey reluctantly sank back down on the couch. He wasn't sure what to believe anymore. Even though his mother had hurt him deeply, he didn't think she'd lie to him.

"Anyway, your father assured me that what happened with the other woman was a one-time deal and that it would never happen again. And I wanted to believe him. But it happened again. And I was furious with him. He had promised me that he wouldn't do it again and he lied to me. And I was so angry that the only thing I wanted to do was hurt him back for all the pain he had caused me."

"There must've been a good reason why Dad did what he did," Joey replied, trying to defend the man who had taken care of him ever since his mother had left him. 

"It was the alcohol, Joseph," Elizabeth replied, pain evident in her voice. "And I won't deny that your father and I were having problems with our marriage then. He had assured me that he was going to try to work on our marriage, but when I caught him with that other woman…"

"You…you caught them together?" The blood drained out of Joey's face.

Elizabeth nodded. "And when I did, the only thing I could think of was revenge. I wanted to hurt your father the same way he had hurt me. And Joseph, I'm not proud of what I'm about to tell you, but you deserve to know what happened."

Joey felt ill. "Ma, you're starting to scare me."

Elizabeth took a deep breath, trying how to figure out the best way to tell her son what was coming next. "A few days after I caught your father with that other woman, I ran into an old friend of mine from school. An old boyfriend, actually. We hadn't seen each other in years, so we had lunch together and decided to catch up on old memories."

Joey felt an ominous tightening in the pit of his stomach. He knew what his mother was going to say next.

"Afterward, we both agreed that we had made a huge mistake and agreed not to see each other again. And it was just one time, Joseph. But that was enough to finish off what little bit was left of our marriage."

Joey turned an anguished face to his mother. "Oh God, Ma…you…you _slept_ with that other guy?" 

Elizabeth nodded slowly. "Yes, son. I did. And I'm not proud of it. Revenge doesn't solve anything, Joseph. It just makes things worse. And for a long time, I didn't tell anyone about it. Until…"

"Until what, Ma?"

"Until one day your father and I had a huge argument, and I told him the truth about Serenity."

"You told him the truth about…what does Serenity have to do with all this?"

"Joseph," Elizabeth took her son's shaking hand in hers. "Serenity isn't your sister. She's your half-sister."

Joey was stunned. "My half-sis…? Ma, what are you sayin'?"

"Joseph, what I'm saying is that your father isn't Serenity's father. You and Serenity are half-brother and sister."

With an anguished cry, Joey buried his head in his hands. "No…it's not true, Ma! It's not!"

Elizabeth laid a hand on her son's shaking shoulders. "Yes, son, it is. And when I told your father, that was what ended our marriage. From then on, he couldn't even stand to look at Serenity. Your father couldn't deal with the fact that she wasn't his daughter."

"Oh no…no…" Joey wailed, overwhelmed by his mother's confession. 

Elizabeth reached up and gently stroked her son's hair the same way she had used to do when he was a small boy. "And Joseph…even though you may not believe me, when I left with Serenity I wanted to take you with me. But your father said that if I took his only child away from him, he'd make certain that I'd lose both you and Serenity. And the last thing in the world I wanted to happen was to be separated from the two of you forever." Elizabeth felt the tears starting in her eyes. "And since I wanted to spare both you and Serenity the pain of having to go through a bitter divorce, the court battles, all the ugliness, I decided that the best thing to do was accept your father's compromise – take Serenity and leave."

Shocked, Joey's head shot up. "My fath…? Ma, are you sayin' that splitting me and Serenity up was _Dad's_ idea?"

Elizabeth swallowed the lump that was forming in her throat and nodded. "I'm so sorry, Joseph."

"Oh, God…oh no…no…" For several minutes, Joey sat with his head in his hands, weeping, not caring what other people thought. His macho façade had completely crumbled under the weight of his mother's words. 

"Oh son, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Elizabeth leaned over, took her near-grown son in her arms, and rocked him the same way she had used to when he was little. 

"Ma…does the other guy know about Serenity?" Joey finally sniffed, wiping his nose on his shirtsleeve.

"No son, he doesn't. I never told him. He had a wife and family of his own, and if they knew what we had done, it would've destroyed their marriage. We agreed not to tell our families about our affair. And when I discovered that your father couldn't have been Serenity's father, I decided that it was best not to tell Hiro."

"Hiro? Was that the other guy's name?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Hiro was killed in a car crash a few years ago. He never knew about Serenity."

"Killed…? Oh man…what happened to his family?"

"Hiro and his wife had two sons. His wife died giving birth to the younger one. One was about your age, and the other was a couple of years younger than Serenity. I think they were sent away to an orphanage in Donkato."

"An orphanage?" An eerie feeling made the hair stand up on the back of Joey's neck. "Do you know if they ever got adopted?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No."

"Ma, don't you think that Serenity has the right to know what happened to her brothers? Her half-brothers, I mean? They're her family, too."

Elizabeth shook her head firmly. "No. As far as Serenity is concerned, you're her only brother. And I'm going to keep it that way. She doesn't deserve to suffer because of my mistakes."

"Suffer…? You mean you haven't told Serenity yet?"

"No. I wanted to, but with the medical problems she was having with her eyes, I figured it best not to upset her. When she's older, I'll tell her like I told you. But right now, she doesn't need to know. And I want you to promise me not to tell her, Joseph…understand?"

"All right, Ma. I promise. But I think you're makin' a big mistake. Serenity needs to know that she's got two other brothers besides me out there."

Elizabeth smiled and laid a hand on her son's cheek. "Joseph, all that Serenity needs to know right now is that she's got a big brother who loves her very much. And…"

"Mrs. Wheeler?"

Both Elizabeth and Joey turned to see a nurse standing in the doorway.

"Mrs. Wheeler," the nurse repeated. "Your daughter Serenity is out of recovery now and is resting comfortably." 

"Is Serenity all right?" Joey asked as he and his mother stood up.

"She's doing well," the nurse smiled reassuringly. "You can go see her now.

"I'm gonna call Yugi and the gang first," said Joey, heading for the telephone. "And I'll catch up with you guys in a moment."

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To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2

"Wow, that's a pretty amazing story," said Téa as she and her friends sat in the ice cream shop just down the street from Domino High.

"Yeah, you're not kidding," agreed Tristan. "Finding out that your sister's really your half-sister and that she's got two half-brothers out there somewhere."

"And your mom didn't say where the two other boys ended up?" asked Yugi.

"Just in an orphanage somewhere in Donkato. She said that one was about my age and the other was a couple of years younger than Serenity," replied Joey.

"In Donkato?" echoed Yugi. "Did you say Donkato?"

"Yeah. What gives, Yug?" said Joey.

"Joey, did you know that Kaiba and Mokuba came from Donkato?" said Yugi.

"What? How did you know that, Yugi?" asked Tristan, surprised.

"It was in this month's issue of _Young Entrepreneur_ magazine," Yugi replied, tossing the magazine on the table. "They did an article on KaibaCorp and how successful they've been with their gaming technologies." Yugi started flipping through the pages of the magazine. "There's a whole article in here about Kaiba and Mokuba, and one of the things they mentioned in here was how they were adopted from an orphanage in…"

"Donkato," Téa read, placing the article in front of her. "It says that their mother died giving birth to Mokuba…oh, that's so sad. I didn't know that."

"And after their father was killed in a car crash a couple of years later, they were adopted by the head of KaibaCorp," Yugi continued.

"Now hang on just a second, guys," Joey said, stunned. "Are you guys sayin' that that creep Kaiba and Mokuba are Serenity's half-brothers?"

"Well, Kaiba is your age, Joey," replied Tristan, scanning the rest of the article over Téa's shoulder. "And Mokuba is a couple of years younger than Serenity. And the way their parents died does jive with what your mother said."

"You have to admit that it does look awfully suspicious, Joey," agreed Téa. 

Joey snatched the magazine from Téa and quickly read the article. "So what?" he replied, tossing the magazine back to Yugi. "That article doesn't prove anything, other than Kaiba is a snotty, arrogant creep."

"Joey, I think maybe we ought to go talk to Kaiba and Mokuba," said Yugi, folding up the magazine and putting in his backpack. 

"What? You've gotta be kiddin', Yug!" exclaimed Joey. "You don't actually think that Kaiba and Mokuba are Serenity's brothers, do you?"

"I'm saying that it does seem pretty coincidental, Joey," replied Yugi. "You've got to admit that."

"Besides, even if they aren't Serenity's brothers, maybe they would know the kids in the Donkato orphanage that are," said Téa hopefully.

"I think it's worth a shot, for Serenity's sake," replied Tristan. "What do you think, Joey?"

"All right," Joey admitted grudgingly. "For Serenity, I'll do anything."

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To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

"I dunno, guys. My big brother is pretty busy," Mokuba told the group assembled in the foyer of the office building that housed the headquarters of KaibaCorp.

"Please, Mokuba. Tell Kaiba that it's important that we talk to him right away," said Téa.

"Actually, Mokuba, maybe you can help us," said Tristan.

"Me? How?" replied Mokuba, confused.

"Mokuba, Joey found out the other day that his sister Serenity has two half-brothers. They all have the same dad," Yugi told the younger boy.

"Wow, that's pretty amazing," replied Mokuba. "But what does that have to do with me?"

"Serenity's two brothers lived for a time in the orphanage in Donkato where you guys were," Joey told Mokuba. "And we were wonderin' if you might've run into them while you were there."

"Well, it's been a long time since my big brother and I were at the orphanage," replied Mokuba. "And I don't really like talking about it that much." The smile disappeared from the boy's face.

"Please, Mokuba," begged Téa. "It's really important."

"Well, all right. I'll try to help you guys out. After all, you helped rescue me and Seto from Pegasus, so we do owe you guys one. What do you want to know?"

"Mokuba, do you know if there was anybody at the orphanage at the same time you were that were brothers like you and Kaiba were?" asked Yugi.

The younger boy shook his head. "No. Seto and I were the only brothers there. A bunch of people wanted to adopt Seto because he was a genius, but he wouldn't go anywhere unless they adopted the both of us." Mokuba gently touched the card-shaped locket that hung around his neck. "Seto's always taken care of me, ever since our parents died."

"Mokuba, do you remember much about your parents?" asked Yugi gently.

"Well, I was just a little kid when my dad died in that car crash. And I never really knew my mom…she died when I was born. But sometimes I can close my eyes and hear my dad's voice or smell his aftershave," the boy said wistfully.

"Mokuba, what was your dad's name?" Joey asked, his voice shaking.

"Dad," the boy replied simply.

"No, I don't mean that. I mean, what was his _real_ name? Like Greg or Tommy or something like that," Joey asked once more, his heart pounding.

"Hiro," replied Mokuba.

"Oh my God." Joey suddenly looked as if he'd been punched in the stomach.

"Joey? Joey, are you okay?" Téa asked. As Joey began to sway, she quickly grabbed his arm.

"Hey, man, maybe you'd better sit down," Tristan told his pale-looking friend, seizing his other arm. 

"Put your head between your knees," Yugi offered helpfully as Téa and Tristan helped Joey into a nearby chair.

"What's wrong, Joey?" Mokuba asked worriedly. "Are you sick?"

"No, no…I'm not sick," Joey insisted, although his ashen face suggested otherwise. "Mokuba, are you sure – absolutely positive – that your dad's name was Hiro?"

"Of course I am, Joey. I'd never forget my dad's name," insisted Mokuba.

"Oh God…" Joey slumped over and buried his face in his trembling hands.

"What's wrong with him?" sneered a familiar voice. 

"Lay off him, Kaiba," Tristan warned the tall, unsmiling, dark-haired boy that had just stepped out of the elevator.

"If he's going to be sick, have him do it outside," continued Kaiba with a disgusted glance at the boy slumped over in the chair. "The floor was cleaned this morning, and I'd like to keep it that way."

Téa rose to Joey's defense. "Kaiba, Joey's had some upsetting news and what he doesn't need right now is any flack from you," she said angrily.

"Then I suggest you leave," Kaiba said, pointing to the front door. 

"Not yet." Joey leapt up from his chair to face his rival. "Not until you and I have had words, Kaiba. Not until you know the truth."

"The truth about what?" Kaiba retorted.

Joey looked Kaiba directly in the eye. "That my sister Serenity is your sister too. Yours and Mokuba's." 

Kaiba gave Joey a disbelieving look. "What are you talking about, Wheeler? Have you gone mad?"

"It's true, Kaiba," Yugi said. "Your father is Serenity's father too."

Mokuba's mouth dropped open in shock. "Is…is it true?"

"No, it's not, Mokuba," Kaiba answered his brother. "It's just a story dreamed up by Wheeler for what reason I don't know. He must be sick because he's acting delusional."

"I'm not delusional!" Joey shouted, seizing Kaiba's arm. "And I'm telling you the truth. My mom said that years ago she and your dad had an affair, and your dad is my sister Serenity's father!" 

"Take your hands off me, Wheeler," Kaiba warned. "Or I'll have you thrown out."

"Why, because you're too much of a wimp to kick me out yourself?" Joey goaded. "Or you don't like hearing the truth? Is that it?"

"Don't tempt me, Wheeler," Kaiba replied with a dangerous edge in his voice. "I kicked your ass once already at Duelist Kingdom. Or did you forget…you cowering puppy?"

"That's it!" Joey lunged for Kaiba's throat, but was quickly pulled back by Tristan.

"Take it easy, man," Tristan said, trying desperately to hang onto his struggling friend. "I know Kaiba's a creep, but punching him isn't going to make this any better."

"But it'll make _me_ feel better!" Joey replied, lunging at Kaiba once more.

"Besides, why should I believe you, Wheeler? Your mother abandoned you, so she's proven that she can't be trusted. Although…" Kaiba smiled maliciously. "Someone low enough to do that would be likely to do something like sleep with someone else's husband." 

"You son of a…! I'm gonna _kill _you for what you just said about my mom!" Joey yanked his arm out of Tristan's grip. Yugi and Téa quickly jumped in to help Tristan hold back the flailing Joey. "Lemme go! I'm gonna beat the crap outta that piece of…" 

"Get him out of here," Kaiba ordered. "I don't have time for this. Come on, Mokuba."

"You stuck-up bastard!" Joey swore as Tristan, Yugi, and Téa dragged him outside. "I'm gonna break both of your legs and stuff them down your throat and then I'm gonna…" 

"Joey, take it easy," said Yugi, trying to calm his enraged friend.

"I can't believe I'm related to that sonofabitch!" Joey kicked savagely at the potted plant outside the entrance to the KaibaCorp building.

"Actually, Joey, you're not," said Téa. "Mokuba's and Kaiba's dad is Serenity's dad, not yours. They're _her_ siblings, not yours."

"Yeah, but Serenity is _my_ sibling too, so in some twisted way I guess that makes Kaiba my brother." Joey laughed grimly. "How's that for a sick joke?"

"Speaking of which, don't you need to get back to the hospital?" Yugi reminded his friend.

Joey glanced at his watch and gasped. "Oh no, you're right, Yug!" 

Joey took off running in the opposite direction. 

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To be continued…


	4. Chapter 4

"Do you think it's true, Seto?"

"What, Mokuba?" Seto replied, not bothering to look up from his computer.

"That Joey's sister Serenity is our sister too," Mokuba said, studying the picture of his parents that sat on his older brother's desk. 

"I can't believe that you're falling for Wheeler's crazy story, Mokuba," Seto replied, disgusted. "I thought you were smarter than that."

"I dunno," Mokuba said, settling back on the couch across from the massive desk that dominated Seto's office. "I think it'd be kind of nice to have a sister."

"Dream on, Mokuba," Seto replied. "You and I are the only family we have now."

"Still…I think I'd like to have a sister," Mokuba continued. "I wonder what she's like?"

Seto ignored his younger brother and turned his attention back to the spreadsheet on his computer screen.

"Serenity. That's a pretty name," thought Mokuba out loud.

Seto looked up from his computer with an exasperated grunt. "Mokuba, if you're going to keep on with this nonsense, then leave me alone. I've got work to do," the older boy said harshly.

"Oh…well, all right, Seto." A dejected Mokuba slowly made his way out of the office and down the hallway to the elevator. But as he pressed the down button, inspiration struck and a smile returned to the boy's face. 

"I'm sure Seto won't mind," he said to himself as he darted excitedly into the elevator.

--- 

"How's Serenity doing?" asked Yugi as he, Téa, and Tristan stepped out of the hospital elevator.

"Well, the doctor said that everything looks good, but he doesn't want to take the bandages off of her eyes just yet," replied Joey. "Ma went to get her a burger and some fries. Serenity says that the food here stinks."

"Can we see her?" said Tristan eagerly. He had recently developed a crush on Serenity.

"Nahh, the doc says that she needs to rest right now. Only family are allowed in her room," said Joey.

"Besides, Tristan," Téa smiled mischievously. "I'm not sure your heart could take being so close to Serenity."

"Wha…?" Everyone laughed as Tristan's face grew bright red.

"Joey?"

Everyone turned to see a small boy with long black hair emerge from the elevator.

"Hey, Mokuba. Whaddya doin' here?" said Joey, somewhat surprised by the boy's appearance.

"I…uh…" The boy fidgeted uncomfortably. "I wanted to see Serenity, if that's okay."

"I don't know, Mokuba. Only family are allowed to visit," Tristan told him.

"But Mokbua _is_ Serenity's family," Téa reminded him.

Joey thought about it for a moment then smiled slightly. "Yeah, I guess you're right, Téa." Joey knelt down until he was eye level with the younger boy. "All right, Mokuba. You can go see Serenity, but ya' gotta promise me one thing."

"What is it, Joey?"

"Ya' see, Mokuba, Serenity doesn't know the truth about your dad being her dad. My mom didn't think it'd be a good idea to break the news to her while she was havin' all those problems with her eyes. So she doesn't know that you're her brother. And until Ma does tell her the truth, you can't say anything about it to her. Okay?"

The boy nodded. "Okay, Joey. I promise." 

He then carefully opened the door to Serenity's room, not knowing exactly what to expect.

"Hello? Joey, is that you?" A pretty, brown-haired girl with bandaged eyes who appeared to be a couple of years older than Mokuba was lying in bed in the middle of the room. "Did you bring me my burger? I'm so sick of lime gelatin."

"Uh, no…" Mokuba replied hesitantly.

Serenity bolted upright in bed, not recognizing the unfamiliar voice. "You're not Joey! Who are you?"

"My name is Mokuba," the boy replied, drawing a little closer to the girl's bed. 

The girl smiled and relaxed visibly. "Oh, yes. Joey told me all about how he helped save you and your brother from Pegasus."

"Yeah." The boy looked curiously at Serenity. "Are your eyes okay now? Joey said you had surgery on them."

"Well, they hurt a bit and are pretty itchy, but the doctor gave me some medicine for them. I can't wait to get these bandages off so I can see my big brother again," Serenity said excitedly.

"Yeah, big brothers are important," Mokuba agreed, seating himself on the edge of the girl's bed.

"It was nice of you to come visit me," Serenity smiled in Mokuba's direction. "Did your big brother come too?"

Mokuba shook his head. "No. Seto and Joey don't get along too well."

"Yeah, Joey's told me all about it. My brother's always telling me about Duel Monsters and all the tournaments he's been in."

"My big brother Seto is the best duelist out there," Mokuba said proudly. "He even runs his own corporation. Do you like Duel Monsters too?"

"I've always wanted to play, but I had a hard time because of these." She pointed to her bandaged eyes. "I never could see the cards."

"If you like, when you get better I could teach you," Mokuba offered.

"That's awfully nice of you, Mokuba. Thanks," Serenity smiled sweetly. "And it was nice of you to visit."

"No problem."

The pair fell silent for several moments, not knowing exactly what to say next.

"Joey said that you and your brother got adopted a few years ago," Serenity finally blurted out. 

"Yeah," replied Mokuba. "Even though a lot of people wanted to adopt Seto, he wouldn't go with anyone unless they adopted me."

"Sounds like your brother isn't as bad as Joey says," Serenity smiled. "I wish Joey and I could've stayed together when our parents split up."

"Yeah, Joey talks about you a lot."

"Brothers are important, aren't they, Mokuba?"

"Yeah, Serenity, they are." 

Mokuba studied the girl in silence for a few moments. 

__

So this is what it feels like to have a sister. It's pretty cool.

"Well, I guess I'd better be going," Mokuba said, hopping off of the bed. 

"Come back and visit anytime," Serenity said. "And be sure to bring your Duel Monsters deck next time because by then I'll be able to see what all the cards in your deck look like."

"Sure thing." Mokuba hesitated for a moment, then slowly reached into his jeans pocket. He pulled forth his Duel Monsters deck and flipped through the cards until he found the one he was searching for. 

"Here," he said, handing Serenity a card. "You can keep this if you want."

Serenity ran her fingers along the card curiously. "What is it?"

"It's Elf's Light," the boy explained. "She helps light up the field and gives strength to light monsters."

"Thank you, Mokuba," Serenity smiled. "I can't wait to see what it looks like."

"Well, guess I'll be seeing ya' later," Mokuba said, heading for the door.

"And once I get these bandages off, I'll be seeing _you_ later, Mokuba," Serenity replied.

"Didja tell her anything, Mokuba?" asked Joey anxiously as the boy emerged from the room.

"No. I didn't say anything, Joey," said Mokuba. "Serenity's really nice."

"She's the best," Joey smiled. "The best sister a guy could ever have."

Mokuba smiled back in agreement. "Yeah. You said it."

--- 

Back at the headquarters of KaibaCorp, Seto was sitting at his desk studying the picture of his parents. The memory of an awful day many years ago had suddenly resurfaced.

"Kimi, please…"

The pretty, dark haired woman slapped her husband's arm away. "Don't 'Kimi, please' me! My God, Hiro! I don't know what's worse -- you cheating on me or you not telling me about it. Were you _ever_ going to tell me about it, Hiro?" 

In the doorway of the bedroom where his parents were arguing, a small, frightened boy stood watching.

__

Don't fight, Mommy and Daddy. Please don't fight, the boy pleaded silently. _I hate it when you fight._

"Kimi, it was a mistake. We never meant for it to happen."

"You're a lying sonofabitch, Hiro. And I…aaugh!" Kimi clutched her swollen abdomen and moaned in pain.

"Kimi, what is it? What's wrong? Is it the baby?" Hiro ran to his wife's side and helped her sit down on the bed. 

Kimi roughly pushed her husband away. "Leave me alone, you cheating bastard!" 

"Mommy! Stop hurting Mommy!" cried the boy, dashing out from his hiding place and racing to his mother's side. "Please stop fighting," pleaded the boy, his eyes red with tears. "I don't want you and Mommy to fight. I hate it when you fight." With a loud whimper, Seto buried his face in his mother's neck.

"See what you've done, Hiro?" Kimi said, stroking her terrified son's untidy brown hair. "You've frightened poor Seto. There, there, darling. It's all right."

"Please stop yelling at each other," hiccuped the crying boy. "Please stop fighting."

"I think you'd better leave us alone, Hiro," Kimi told her husband.

Hiro turned and silently left the room. 

And the events of the month following his parents' huge argument was something that Seto wished he could block out of his mind forever.

After their blow-up, Seto's mother and father kept talking about something called "divorce". Seto was too young to understand what a "divorce" was, but he figured that it must be something bad to make his mommy and daddy fight so much. 

And then…

An "amniotic fluid embolism" was what the doctors called it. They said it was extremely rare, and that there was nothing they could've done to prevent it.

But all Seto knew was that one minute his mother was smiling and telling him about how she thought he was going to be a good big brother to the new baby, and a short time later his father was crying and telling him that Mommy had died.

But miraculously, the doctors had been able to save the baby that his mother had been giving birth to when she had died. 

"Don't worry, baby Mokuba," a crying Seto reassured his new brother when his father placed him in his arms. "I'll take care of you now."

__

If what Joey says is true, Seto thought, studying the placid smile on his mother's face, _then his mother was the one who ruined my parents' marriage. _

All those sleepless nights crying in my pillow, listening to my parents fighting, worrying about whether or not they were going to stay together…it's all her fault.

But if what Joey says is true, said a small voice inside Seto's head, _then you also have a sister._

"Bullshit. It's all bullshit," Seto said angrily, placing the picture back on his desk with a loud thump. "I don't have time for this." He turned his attention back to the report on his computer.

"Hey, Seto," said Mokuba, peering around the door to his brother's office.

Seto looked up from his work. "Hello, Mokuba. I'm sorry that I got angry with you earlier."

"That's okay, Big Brother." Mokuba seated himself on the couch. 

"Where have you been?" asked Seto.

"I…uh…" Mokuba replied hesitantly, unsure if his older brother would like that he had been to see Serenity at the hospital.

Seto noticed his brother's reticence and immediately figured out where Mokuba had been. 

"You went to see Wheeler's sister, didn't you?" Seto said, his voice cool.

Mokuba nodded slowly. "Don't get mad, Big Brother. I just wanted to see her. If what Joey says is true, and that Serenity is our sister, then I'd like to get to know her better."

"Mokuba, for your sake, stay away from Serenity and the entire Wheeler family," Seto warned. "They're nothing but trouble."

"But why, Seto? Serenity seems like she's really nice. And Joey helped rescue us from Pegasus when…"

"Damn it, Mokuba, I'm tired of hearing about Joey and his sister and how wonderful they all are!" Seto shouted, bringing his fist down on his desk with such fury that all the items atop it rattled.

The younger boy cowered and shrank down into the cushions of the couch. "What's wrong, Seto?" asked Mokuba, his eyes wide with fright.

At the sight of his younger brother's terrified expression, Seto immediately felt guilty. "Oh, Mokuba, I'm sorry." Seto rubbed his aching temples. "I'm not feeling well. I shouldn't have shouted at you like that."

"That's okay, Seto." Mobuka got up and gave his older brother a hug. "I'm sorry that you don't feel well. Maybe you'd better stop and get some rest."

"That sounds like a good idea, Mokuba." 

"You shouldn't work so hard, Seto. I worry about you," said Mokuba, burying his face in his brother's neck. "And I don't want anything to happen to you. You're the only person I've got left in this world."

As he clutched his brother close to him, a single tear slid out of Seto's eye. But he quickly wiped it away, recalling his adoptive father's words:

__

Tears are a sign of weakness. A real man doesn't cry, and I never want to see any son of mine crying like a spineless sissy.

That remark had also been accompanied by a beating to "toughen" Seto up – one of many to help "prepare" him for the ruthless world of business.

__

One day you'll thank me for this, son, Gozaburou had said while delivering another blow to his ten-year old son's head. _You'll thank me for making you a man._

"Seto? Why are you shaking? Are you sick?" 

"No, Mokuba. I'm fine." Seto released himself from his brother's embrace and shut off his computer. "Let's go."

__

To be continued…


	5. Chapter 5

"Today's the day! I can't wait," Joey smiled excitedly.

"I know. Serenity's getting her bandages off today," Téa said as she and her friends stepped off of the hospital elevator.

"Hello, Joseph," Elizabeth smiled at her son. "And hello, everyone. It's good of you to come."

"Hi, Mrs. Wheeler," replied Yugi. "We all wanted to be here for both Joey and Serenity."

"So did I," echoed another voice from the opposite hallway.

"Hi, Mokuba," Tristan greeted the younger boy, who was carrying a small bouquet of flowers.

"You think Serenity will like these, Joey?" Mokuba asked.

"Aargh! Flowers! I knew I forgot something!" Joey groaned and smacked himself on the forehead with his open palm.

"Don't worry about it, Joey," said Téa. "I think Serenity will be happy just to have you with her."

"Hello. I don't believe we've met," Elizabeth smiled at the dark-haired boy. "I'm Serenity's mother."

"Hello, Mrs. Wheeler. I'm Mokuba Kaiba." The boy shook Elizabeth's hand.

"It was very nice of you to bring Serenity flowers," Elizabeth smiled, admiring the bouquet of colorful wildflowers in Mokuba's hand. "How did you know that Serenity liked daisies?"

"Joey told me," Mokuba said.

"Joey, how come your dad isn't here?" asked Téa, looking around the waiting area. "Doesn't he want to be here when Serenity gets her bandages off?"

"Uh, he had to go outta town on business," Joey muttered, glancing down at the floor. "But he wanted to be here…really, he did." 

But both Elizabeth and Joey knew that that was a lie. The night before, Joey had yelled at his father for not even coming to the hospital to see Serenity.

"Serenity needs ya', Dad!" Joey shouted. "It don't matter if you're really her dad or not, you _are_ her dad!"

"_Really_ her dad…?" Alex Wheeler's eyes grew wide with shock. "Who told you?"

"Ma did," Joey replied. "She also told me about what happened between the two of you. And how _you_ were the one who split me and Serenity up!"

"Oh, she did, did she?" Alex sneered sarcastically as headed for the door. 

"Hey, wait a minute! Where are you going, Dad?" Joey grabbed his father's arm.

"Out," Alex replied. "I don't know when I'll be back."

"You're going out to get drunk again, aren't ya'?" Joey shot back. "Man, it all makes sense now. All these years when the going got tough, you'd just run off and disappear for a few hours…days, even, and go get plastered, while I had to sit at home alone wonderin' where you were and if you'd ever come back!"

"But at least I did come back. Unlike your mother," Alex countered. "Now take your hands off of me."

"At least Ma had a good reason for leavin'! She was trying to protect Serenity because you couldn't deal with the fact that she wasn't your daughter!" 

"You're just about to cross over the line, son. Now let go of my arm," Alex repeated with a dangerous edge in his voice.

But Joey's grip grew tighter. "No! I'm not lettin' go of you unless you promise me that you're gonna go see Serenity in the hospital!"

Joey lightly touched a forelock of his lanky blond hair to make sure it was still covering the cut over his eye from where his father had hit him. And despite Joey's stand, his father had left. Joey had no idea when he'd be back, but the boy was used to his father's disappearances. After all, they were the reason why Joey had learned how to fend for himself on the streets. 

"Oh, that's too bad," said Téa. 

"Seto wanted to be here too," said Mokuba. "But he…"

"Don't lie, Mokuba," rasped a low voice from the direction of the elevator.

Mokuba ran up to his brother. "Seto! What are you doing here?"

"You weren't at breakfast this morning. And when I asked the servants where you had gone, they told me that you had gone to the hospital. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out the reason why."

"Seto, Serenity's getting her bandages off today," Mokuba told his older brother. "And I wanted to be here when she did."

"Hello. I don't believe we've met," Elizabeth smiled in Seto's direction. 

"This is Serenity's mom," Mokuba informed his brother. "Mrs. Wheeler."

At the mention of Elizabeth's name, Seto's unsmiling face hardened. "Mrs. Wheeler? Elizabeth Wheeler?"

"That's right," Elizabeth replied.

Seto stared angrily at the woman he held responsible for his mother's death. "Mrs. Wheeler, did you know a man by the name of Hiro Kirigawa?" 

"Hiro…? Elizabeth gasped as her eyes met the boy's ice blue ones. "Oh my God." To everyone's amazement, Elizabeth reached up and lightly touched Seto's cheek. "You're Hiro's son, aren't you? I should have known. You look just like him."

Seto flinched in disgust at Elizabeth's touch. "Don't touch me."

"I'm so sorry about your parents, Seto," Elizabeth continued, her voice gentle. "I knew your father. He and I were friends."

It had been so long since any adult, or anyone else for that matter, had expressed sympathy for Seto, that for an instant the boy felt the protective wall of coldness around him crumble. But then his father's – his adoptive father's – words came floating back.

__

Trust no one. If anyone is trying to be nice to you, it means that they want something from you. They don't really give a damn about you. No one does. 

Gozaburou had taught him well. 

"You were more than friends," Seto said accusingly, his voice as cold as his ice blue eyes. "You ruined my parents' marriage. You destroyed my family."

"Hey, you can't talk to my ma like that!" Joey grabbed Seto by the shoulder and spun him around, ready to smash his fist into his rival's face.

"No, Joseph. Let him go," Elizabeth ordered. "He has every right to be angry with me."

"Wha…?" Joey was stunned by his mother's request. 

"Seto," Elizabeth said gently, "both your father and I never meant for this to happen. We both agreed that it was a huge mistake. It happened only once, and I swear to you that it never happened again."

"Your word means nothing to me," Seto shot back. "Why should I believe the woman who seduced my father and destroyed my parents' happiness? We were happy…everything was happy until you came along and destroyed everything!"

"I'm sorry, Seto," Elizabeth said, tears forming in her eyes. "We never meant to hurt anyone. Or at least your father didn't. He never wanted to hurt you. He loved you a lot."

"Don't patronize me! I'm not a child!" Seto shouted. He wanted to hurt her, make her suffer the same way he had suffered when he had heard his parents fighting all the time. "You're a lying, disgusting, filthy who…"

"No one calls my mom that and lives, Kaiba!" Joey lunged for Seto, but had to be forcibly restrained by both Tristan and Yugi.

"Seto, if you want to hate me, go right on ahead. But don't hate Serenity. Don't make her suffer for my mistakes," Elizabeth pleaded. "She's the innocent one in all this. She's your sister, Seto."

"I don't want anything to do with you! And I don't ever want to see your face again as long as I live!" Seto turned and headed for the elevator. "Come on, Mokuba. We're going home."

"You'd better run, you bastard, because when I catch up with you, I'm gonna kill you for what you just called my mom, you sonofabitch!" Joey shouted as he tried to break free of Yugi's and Tristan's grip.

"Seto, wait!" Mokuba dashed down the hallway. "Don't you want to see Serenity?"

"Mokuba, you're too young to understand all this. Come home with me," Kaiba said, extending his hand to his younger brother.

"No. I wanna see Serenity! She's our _sister_, Seto! And we've gotta be there for her when she gets her bandages off," Mokuba insisted stubbornly.

Seto knelt down next to his brother. "Mokuba, you weren't there. You weren't around when Mom and Dad were fighting all the time. You didn't fall asleep listening to Mom and Dad argue and wondering if they were going to split up. You didn't stay up late crying because you were afraid that you weren't going to have a family when you woke up."

"But we do have a family, Seto," said Mokuba, placing his arms around his older brother's neck. "I have you. And now we have a sister. Joey's mom is right. Even though you're mad at Mrs. Wheeler, Serenity didn't do anything wrong. She's really nice, Seto. I promised Serenity that I'd teach her how to play Duel Monsters when she could see again."

"Fine. If you want to stay, then that's up to you." Seto pulled himself free from his brother's embrace. "But I'm not staying here."

"Seto, wait!" Mokuba ran after his brother, but the elevator closed in his face. 

"Let me go! Let me go!" cried Joey as he tried desperately to break free of his friends' grasp. "I'm gonna wipe up the floor with that fuc…"

"Joseph, watch your language!" Elizabeth sharply remonstrated her son. "Especially in front of the younger boy." She pointed to the dejected-looking Mokuba, who had just appeared in the doorway of the waiting room.

"Ma, you heard what that creep called you!" Joey said incredulously. 

"Seto didn't mean it, Joey," Mokuba explained. "He's upset. He said that he's mad at your mom because she made our parents fight."

Elizabeth knelt down next to the boy. "Mokuba, I'm so sorry about what happened to your parents. And I'm sorry that I was the one that made them fight. Your father and I never meant to cause both you and your brother such pain."

"Thanks, Mrs. Wheeler. Even though Seto says you're bad, I don't think so."

Elizabeth smiled and gave the boy a quick hug. "Thank you, Mokuba. That's very nice of you."

A nurse appeared in the doorway. "Mrs. Wheeler, the doctor is ready to remove your daughter's bandages now."

"Come on, everyone. This is the moment we've all been waiting for," said Tristan, loosening his grip on Joey. "We said we were all going be there for Serenity, so let's go."

__

To be continued…


	6. Chapter 6

For the rest of the afternoon, Seto shut himself up in his office and buried himself in his work. It wasn't until late afternoon that the boy stood up from his computer and stretched. Seto massaged his aching temples – he had gotten so caught up in his work that he had forgotten to eat lunch and was starting with a tension headache. Mokuba was right -- he did work too hard sometimes. The boy settled himself on the couch across from his desk, shut his eyes, and almost immediately fell asleep.

But even in his dreams he couldn't escape the conflict that was eating away at him.

__

She's our sister, Seto. And we've gotta be there for her.

Don't hate Serenity. She's the innocent one in all this.

My sister Serenity is your sister too. Yours and Mokuba's.

Seto awoke with a start to discover that nearly an hour had passed since he had lain down for what he had intended to be a brief nap. But despite the sleep, he still didn't feel better. And then he realized that if he ever wanted to have a peaceful night's sleep again, there was one thing he had to do.

--- 

Serenity was so lost in thought that she didn't hear the knock at her door at first. 

She turned her head at the sound of the door opening and saw that her visitor was a tall, unsmiling, brown-haired boy a few years older than she was.

"Hello. Are you Seto?" Serenity asked her visitor curiously. 

The boy was momentarily taken aback by Serenity's knowing who he was, since he had never met the girl before.

"All Mokuba does is talk about you," Serenity replied with an amused smile at the surprised expression on Seto's face. "Even if I still had my bandages on, I would've known who you were." She patted the edge of the bed. "Sit down."

"I'll stand. I'm not going to stay here long," the boy replied, keeping his distance. He was still uncertain about Serenity and what to think of her.

"Joey talks about you a lot too, although not in the same way Mokuba does," Serenity said, her smile fading. 

Seto didn't respond, but continued to study the girl silently.

Feeling uncomfortable by Seto's gaze, Serenity blurted out, "So you're my brother, huh?"

Seto was taken aback once more. "Who…? I thought Mokuba said that you didn't know about what happened between your mother and my father."

"My mom told me a little while ago. After everyone left. I'm still trying to deal with it," Serenity replied, her face serious. "It's kind of strange…finding out you're not who you think you are. And I'm still pretty mad at my mom for not telling me sooner, but I understand why she did it. I was having so many problems with my eyes that she didn't want to upset me even more."

"How are your eyes?" Seto asked, drawing a little closer to the girl's bed. "Wheeler…Joey said that you had an operation a few days ago."

"Uh-huh. I just got the bandages off a little while ago. It's so nice being able to see again. I haven't been able to see this clearly in years." Serenity smiled at her visitor. "Before I had my surgery, I wouldn't have been able to tell what color your eyes were or that your hair is almost exactly the same color as mine."

Seto unconsciously ran a hand through his brown hair.

"It's kind of nice having two new brothers," the girl continued. "And Mokuba is really happy about it. He started to teach me how to play Duel Monsters this afternoon. He's so sweet."

"He's the best brother anyone can ever have," Seto replied. "And the last thing in the world I want is for anyone to hurt him." 

"Yeah, I know how that is. Mokuba told me about how you took care of him when your parents died. At least you two were lucky enough that you were able to stay together. I wish that Joey and I could've stayed together when our parents split up," Serenity said sadly. "But now…" Her face brightened. "I have _three_ brothers!" 

"Look, Serenity…I'm still trying to deal with all this too, so don't expect me to suddenly become your loving big brother who's eager to welcome you with open arms. That's not why I came here."

"If it's not, then why did you come here?" Serenity asked curiously.

"I…I don't know," Seto replied, suddenly feeling more uncomfortable than he already was. "Anyway, I'd better be going now." He quickly headed for the door.

"Thanks for stopping by anyway," Serenity called out at Seto's retreating form.

Seto breathed a sigh of relief as he headed down the corridor. The truth was that he had felt his heart opening up to Serenity and it had frightened him. The last thing in the world he wanted to do was get close to her, or anyone for that matter. Seto had been hurt so much the last few years by losing the people he had loved, and his adoptive father had shattered any trust he had felt towards others that the truth was that Seto wasn't able to love anyone else except Mokuba. He didn't want to take a chance of opening his heart up to someone, only to have them either die or betray that trust. And even if Serenity was his sister and she did seem like she wasn't out to deceive him, he wasn't ready to let himself get close to her. He doubted that he ever would get close to anyone ever again. It hurt too much.

But as he passed by the sign in the hallway that read "Billing", he hesitated for a moment. Then before he could stop himself, he opened the door and approached the woman seated at the desk inside the office.

"Can I help you?" the woman at the desk asked pleasantly, smiling up at him.

"Have all the bills for Serenity Wheeler sent to this address," Seto said, handing her a business card. 

__

To be continued…


	7. Chapter 7

A week later, Joey paid a visit to the KaibaCorp offices.

"What the hell are you playin' at, Kaiba?!" Joey shouted as he burst into Seto's office. 

"What do you want, Wheeler?" Seto replied, not bothering to look up from his computer.

"I'm talkin' about this, Kaiba!" Joey slammed down a statement on Seto's desk that read _Paid In Full_. "The lady at the hospital said that you paid all the bills for Serenity's operation!"

"It's none of your concern, Wheeler," Seto replied, eyeing Joey coldly. 

"It is if it involves my sister!" Joey shouted. "The reason I went to Duelist Kingdom was so I could get the three million bucks for Serenity's operation!"

"Save your money and put it to good use – like buying yourself some dueling lessons," Seto replied, turning his attention back to his work.

"Why I oughta…!" Joey was ready to take a swing at his rival for that comment, but stopped himself. "What I don't get, Kaiba, is why did you do it?"

Seto sighed in exasperation. "If I have to explain it to you, Joey, then you're dumber than I thought. Now get out of here and let me work or else I'll have you thrown out."

"Fine!" Joey snarled. "But the Wheelers don't take charity!"

"It's not charity, you moron!" Seto shot back. 

"You coulda fooled me!" Joey replied.

"Which wouldn't be hard to do," Seto retorted.

"Why you…!"

Seto dodged Joey's fists and tapped a button on his desk. "Security, come get this lunatic out of my office."

"Never mind, Kaiba. I'm goin'," Joey huffed. "But this isn't over, Kaiba. Not by a long shot."

Joey picked up the bill and stormed out of his rival's office.

--- 

"Kaiba paid _all _of Serenity's medical bills?" Téa exclaimed in surprise as she studied the statement Joey had just handed her. 

"I don't believe it," said Tristan, peering over Téa's shoulder.

"Neither can I," Joey fumed. "I still can't figure out why he did it. That creep knew that the reason I risked my butt at Duelist Kingdom was so I could win the money for Serenity's operation. I think he's doing this just to piss me off."

"No, he's not, Joey," Yugi said, taking the statement from Téa. "He's doing it because he wants to help his sister."

Joey's jaw dropped in surprise. "Wha…? No way!"

"Yugi's right, Joey," agreed Téa. "Kaiba won't let himself get close to anyone, including Serenity, so the next best thing he could do was pay her bills."

"Even though Kaiba may be a creep, he does do a good job taking care of his younger brother. And now it looks like he's going to start taking care of his younger sister too," said Tristan. "Guess he's not as heartless as we thought."

"Yeah, well I still can't believe that I'm related to that jerk," Joey fumed. 

"Joey, I already explained it to you. You're not related to Kaiba," said Téa. 

"Yeah, well…I don't wanna talk about it anymore." Joey took the statement back from Yugi and stuffed it into his pocket. "Come on, let's go. I promised Serenity that I'd take her to Grandpa's shop so I can help her put together her Duel Monsters deck."

--- 

"Hey, Seto," Mokuba greeted his brother cheerfully as he bounded into Seto's office. "Serenity and I are gonna have our first Duel Monsters battle at the arcade at KaibaLand. Wanna come watch?"

"Sorry, Mokuba. I've got too much work to do. Maybe some other time." Seto continued working on the complex diagram on his computer.

"Oh, okay," Mokuba replied, somewhat disappointed. As he turned to leave, he hesitated for a moment. "Yugi and Joey told me about you paying all of Serenity's medical bills. That was really nice of you, Big Brother."

Seto waved his hand dismissively. "Charity. I needed a tax deduction this year."

"You can't fool me, Big Brother. You want to help our sister too," Mokuba smiled knowingly. "You really should spend some time hanging out with me and Serenity, Seto. She's really nice."

Seto appeared to be absorbed in his work, so Mokuba quietly slipped out of the office.

A few minutes after the door shut, Seto rubbed his eyes, stood up, and looked out the window behind his desk. On the sidewalk below, Mokuba appeared and ran up to a slender girl with long brown hair the same color as Seto's.

"Perhaps someday," Seto whispered to himself. "But not now."

Seto watched as Mokuba and Serenity headed off in the direction of KaibaLand, then sat back down at his desk. But instead of turning his attention back to his work, he picked up the picture of his parents that was seated on his desk next to his computer. The picture had been taken long ago, when Seto was still a baby – during the good times. 

"Perhaps someday," Seto told his father's smiling face. "But not now."

And with that, Seto returned the picture to its original place on his desk and turned his attention back to his work -- KaibaCorp wasn't going to run itself. After all, Seto did have an obligation to provide for his little brother.

And for his sister too.

THE END


End file.
